City/county Digest

CITY/COUNTY DIGEST

April 20, 2006

Agency identifies boy, 4, found alone in city

A 4-year-old boy found wandering along a busy West Baltimore street April 3 has been identified, and a spokeswoman for the city's Department of Social Services said the agency is working with the child's family.

Sue Fitzsimmons, the spokeswoman, said a court order forbids the agency from disclosing details of the case, including whether the child has been reunited with his family.

Media coverage of the child prompted several calls from people interested in finding the boy's relatives, she said.

The boy was found walking alone in the 3000 block of W. North Ave. and told police his first name is Isaiah but that he did not know his last name or his address. He told police he was looking for his grandmother's house and that his mother's first name is Cassie.

The child was found to be in good health and placed in foster care, said Fitzsimmons.

"It's vital for parents to teach their children their name, age and address in the event they become lost," Fitzsimmons said.

Richard Irwin

Baltimore: Brooklyn

One-alarm grass fire fills sky with smoke

A stubborn grass fire near the city's Brooklyn community briefly filled the sky south of the Inner Harbor with dense smoke yesterday afternoon. The one-alarm fire was reported about 4:30 p.m. and quickly spread to more than an acre of dry grass near Potee Street and Patapsco Avenue, said Capt. Roman Clark, a city Fire Department spokesman. A slight breeze carried smoke toward downtown Baltimore, making it appear to be a serious incident, Clark said. He said the fire did not threaten any buildings and was contained in about two hours by 40 firefighters. The cause was being investigated, Clark said.

Illegal parking

Commercial-vehicle crackdown starts

Baltimore Department of Transportation officials announced yesterday they are planning to crack down on commercial vehicles illegally parked in various areas of the city. Regulations prohibit commercial vehicles weighing more than three-quarters of a ton from parking, standing or stopping longer than one hour continuously on any street, lane or alley in front of or adjacent to any property used or intended to be used as a residence. Detached commercial vehicles also are not permitted to be parked on any public street or highway in the city, officials say. Violators will be ticketed and towed to the city's main impound lot at 6700 Pulaski Highway, with fines as high as $300, depending on the size of the vehicle. Officials are encouraging residents to call 311 to report commercial vehicles they believe are illegally parked.